Education and Teacher Certification

The Professional Education Program offers programs to prepare students to become teachers of academic subjects in secondary schools (grades 7 through 12) and to become teachers of English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) in grades Pre-K through 12. Stony Brook's teacher certification programs are registered and approved by the New York State Education Department.

Students complete the requirements of either a Departmental major or an interdisciplinary major in addition to teacher certification. It is recommended that students consult their planned major department as early as the second semester of the freshman year but no later than the second semester of their sophomore year to determine if the major includes the teacher education option. It is necessary to apply for admission to the Professional Education Program and to obtain guidance from program coordinators in completing teacher education and departmental major requirements for a degree. Teacher Education programs are offered in the following subject areas:

Accelerated Bachelor's/Master's Degree Programs are also available. Prospective students should contact the director of the certification program that they are interested in for information about this enrollment option.

All graduate and five-year accelerated bachelor's/master's level programs include 5-6 extension options (except for TESOL, which is a PreK-12 program) with the addition of CEE 601 and CEE 602.

All students seeking a certification and resulting NYS license in the teaching of a specific science (Biology, Chemistry, Earth Science, or Physics) at the adolescent level (Grades 7 to 12) can, by the completion of 18 credits in two or more sciences combined other than the primary science for which they are licensed, add a General Science Extension to their primary license. See your teacher preparation program director or academic advisor for additional information.

University-Wide Coordination of the Programs

The various programs, each of which is registered and approved by the New York State Education Depart­ment, are coordinated by the Nation­ally Accredited Professional Educa­tion Pro­gram (PEP). PEP performs a major role in the Long Island region by coordinating, supporting, streng­thening, and developing: 1) undergraduate and graduate (pre-service) and graduate (in-service) teacher certification and teacher education; 2) educational research and development; and 3) school-university partner­ship programs. PEP has had a significant positive impact upon the Long Island region and is widely recognized as a symbol of Stony Brook Univ­ersity's commitment to teach­er education.

The University-wide approach to teacher education adopted by Stony Brook provides graduates of our teacher education programs with the intellectual rigor of an academic major as well as a valuable professional credential that qualifies them to teach in New York State and many other states in the country through the Interstate Agreement on the Qualification of Educational Personnel.